English
tryst
Tryst comes from Old French triste ‘sad’.
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400triste‘sad’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tryst
- Englishearliest quotation 1874same form
attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed
Earlier history uncertain.
Lineage
- Old Frenchc. 842–1400triste‘sad’
- Middle Englishc. 1150–1500tryst
- Englishearliest quotation 1874same form
Earliest quotation: 1874, Alfred Tennyson, Merlin and Vivien: “And Vivien, like the tenderest-hearted maid / That ever…”
Linked words
through Proto-Germanic *traustą ‘trust, shelter’
through Old French triste ‘sad’
Today it means
noun A prearranged meeting or assignation, now especially between lovers to meet at a specific place and time.
Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.
Etymograph / Old French triste / tryst